Chapter 32
The remaining people stayed in the isolation area, and Shen Yuzhe took the opportunity to exchange information with Jay.
Shen Yuzhe had made significant progress in the past month. He not only improved his relationship with Kai but also obtained new information. However, at the moment, some of this information didn’t seem immediately relevant.
He had initially considered bringing up the topic of the “abilities” Kai mentioned, but upon further reflection, he felt that Kai’s awakening had a certain level of randomness, and he remained cautious about whether he was also a “superpower.” Therefore, he decided to keep that information to himself for the time being.
On Jay’s end, there wasn’t much to report aside from Johnny being taken away, and Evan’s household remained the same. However, he mentioned that Mina and Lily had undergone significant changes after the last “game.” Especially Mina, she no longer blindly followed Evan and often seemed lost in thought. She even started asking Jay about his and Shen Yuzhe’s escape plan. She probably realized that neither of them had given up on escaping.
Shen Yuzhe was pleased to hear this, and although the escape plan was still unclear, progress was being made.
Jay asked, “Do you plan to stay here?”
Shen Yuzhe replied, “Hmm.” It wasn’t that he planned to stay; he just couldn’t leave at the moment. Even if Evan couldn’t take him away, Kai wouldn’t let him leave.
In the past month, Kai’s attitude towards him had been the most unpredictable. Sometimes Shen Yuzhe felt that Kai didn’t care about him at all, but at other times, he felt that Kai considered him a very important person. Since the incident with “choosing females,” Kai’s behavior had left Shen Yuzhe with many uncertainties. Still, when he reviewed their actions, they hadn’t done anything concrete. The crucial point was that even in the ambiguous situation, such as licking the neck, the other party remained straightforward, as if Shen Yuzhe had been overthinking everything from start to finish.
Shen Yuzhe glanced in Kai’s direction and saw Kai staring expressionlessly into the sky.
No, not expressionless.
After a month of being together, Shen Yuzhe had learned to read some of Kai’s micro-expressions. He could tell when Kai was impatient, serious, stubborn, or in a relatively good mood. At this moment, Kai’s expression was particularly serious, almost to the point of being described as “terrifying.”
Following his gaze, Shen Yuzhe looked up. What had Kai seen?
Just as he was wondering, Kai suddenly jumped from the crowd and leaped towards Shen Yuzhe, grabbing his arm and attempting to take him away.
“What’s going on?” Shen Yuzhe hadn’t reacted yet when he felt a shadow rapidly pass overhead, causing a stronger gust of wind.
Only now did the miniature people look up, and when they saw what it was, their faces were filled with terror. Many of them screamed on the spot and scattered in all directions, calling out, “Find shelter! Find shelter!” in a panic.
Amidst the chaos, Shen Yuzhe was still staring in astonishment at the sky. The thing was hovering over the base, and it seemed to have targeted something, swiftly diving in a particular direction.
Shen Yuzhe suddenly shook off Kai’s hand. Instead of following him, he had a changed expression and ran toward where the creature was descending.
The creature was eating rice grains – Qiao was in danger!
At that moment, Qiao was holding a bag of rice and preparing to meet up with his teammates. He had good luck, having collected quite a bit of rice in the game so far.
Honestly, he had never participated in a game with such a carefree attitude before. He now had “friends,” and even if he lost, he believed that the guy named “Yuzhe” would help him. Moreover, today Mina had brought him food.
Qiao was happily recalling Mina’s shy expression when he felt a gust of wind.
… Why was there wind here!?
Qiao raised his head in confusion, his pupils suddenly dilating, and all the rice in his arms fell to the ground.
It was a giant white bird, descending in front of him, stirring up a cloud of dust upon landing.
The bird took a step closer to Qiao, lowered its head, pecked a few times, and started eating the rice grains on the ground.
Qiao had long been frightened and sat on the ground, moving backward unconsciously.
For a moment, he thought he was dreaming.
He didn’t know whether the bird had grown larger or if he had become smaller because the bird in front of him looked a lot like the one he had often dreamed of – the one he had killed, but it was more than ten times larger.
After finishing the rice grains on the ground, it raised its head and stared at Qiao with a pair of emotionless reddish-brown eyes.
Qiao’s breath caught in his throat, and he instinctively tried to reach for the sweet rice balls that Mina had given him in his pocket.
But it was too late.
As his trembling hand reached into his pocket, the enormous white bird leaped over and grabbed him, its talons piercing his clothes and sinking into his skin.
The white bird twisted its neck and looked down at the small people below, filled with the scent of food. Its sharp beak aimed at a specific spot and pecked forcefully…
Qiao’s vision went black, and intense pain spread throughout his body. His mind was filled with a jumble of chaotic images…
“Please, give us a little more time!” a woman knelt on the ground, pleading with several well-dressed men.
“More time?” one of the men spat at the woman, cursing, “How much time have I already given you? Even if I gave you five or ten more years, you still wouldn’t be able to repay. Start hitting!”
The group of people began smashing things in the house and kicking the woman on the ground until she could no longer make a sound.
…
The scene flashed, and he found himself in his most familiar dream.
A pigeon had flown into his room, and he had caught it, gripping it tightly in the hope that it would provide some warmth. But he couldn’t control his strength due to fear, and he had crushed the bird to death…
…
Next, his vision changed to many unfamiliar people arguing in front of him.
“The man owes a high-interest loan and has disappeared, and the woman died under pressure from the debt collection company. Their biological son witnessed the entire process of his mother’s death… It’s truly tragic.”
“The man was a gambler in debt, and the woman used drugs and engaged in prostitution. They got what they deserved. Taxpayers work hard, not to support these government parasites.”
“But the child’s experience is worthy of sympathy.”
“Sympathy cannot be the basis for our handling of the case. We have already had professionals assess the child’s mental damage, and it is at level three.”
“He’s only fifteen…”
“Based on past data analysis, this kind of experience has already caused irreparable psychological trauma to the child in almost ninety percent of cases. It will further lead to a breakdown in his personality and pose uncontrollable risks to society.”
“Significantly, the day after his mother’s death, he was sent to an observation facility. In the observation facility, there were several gentle and peaceful pigeons. One of them flew into his room and was crushed to death by this child.”
…
The woman stamped a seal on the document and concluded, “Our company has decided to send Lowell Shaw to the Human Remodeling Center for memory wiping. He will be observed in the Miniature World Training Area for a period, and after determining that there are no significant issues, he will be allocated to a designated area.”
…
…
The memories faded slowly, and the monstrous giant bird reappeared in his field of vision.
It was like a cursed cycle of life and destiny. He had crushed the bird, and the bird had turned him into a miniature person, causing him to fail the test. This had led him to his current situation. And now, it was back in front of him.
Qiao saw two familiar figures rushing toward him from a distance. One of them distracted the giant bird from him, while the other one flew up to him, shouting his name in panic.
Qiao wanted to tell Shen Yuzhe that he remembered. They were giants, not miniature people. He wanted to say he wasn’t named Qiao; he was Lowell Shaw. He wanted to remember that he came from Zone B, and he was a legal citizen of Country B.
But when he opened his mouth, blood gushed out, and he couldn’t make a sound.
Shen Yuzhe tightly held his hand, afraid to move his bloodied body.
“I…” Qiao coughed up blood, also gripping Shen Yuzhe’s hand tightly, trying to convey something.
But in the end, he only muttered a single sentence, unable to produce any more sound.
“Yes, we are!” Shen Yuzhe desperately nodded in agreement, tears streaming down his face. Though their acquaintance had been brief, every moment they had shared flashed before Shen Yuzhe’s eyes at this moment.
-“Coming here, you’re bound to have more bad luck. Take care of yourselves.” Qiao jokingly reminded.
-“Don’t glare at me. I, for one, wished I were a woman for a while. Being alive is better than being dead, right?” Qiao teased with a mischievous grin.
-“Good luck when drawing cards, bad luck during the game…” Qiao sighed resignedly.
-“Whether you need it or not, I’ve done my bit. Isn’t that considerate enough?” Qiao playfully taunted with a smile.
…
Not long ago, they were sharing the food brought by Mina and planning to chat later.
But now, Joe clutched his own hand, which was limp and falling.
His face was covered in blood, but he wore a smile, as if he had realized something before his death and had no regrets.
However, death meant no more life. There would be no more teasing Shen Yuzhe about his relationship with Kai, no more childish moments taking him and the little wolf to see snails, and no more playful banter with Mina…
In the end, Joe’s whispered words asked Shen Yuzhe a question: “We are friends, right?”
Shen Yuzhe trembled uncontrollably, and his brain felt like it was about to explode.
In this excruciating pain, the confusion and frustration he had felt on that rooftop that night were completely gone.
“Ah… Ahhhhhh!!!”
The pain unleashed a terrifying energy throughout his body. Even if the truth was buried deep, he would dig three feet into the ground, cut the binds that restrained them, break free from this oppressive hand, and find the real culprits who had trapped them in this situation, breaking them to pieces and scattering their remains!
“Zzzz…” Prolonged electromagnetic noise accompanied a painful roar, and all the lights, cameras, and projections above his head went out in an instant. The signals were lost.
Kai, not far away, didn’t have time to shield his senses and was knocked back a few feet, feeling dizzy.
In two other corners of the base, the two individuals with weak psychic abilities were similarly affected. One had a pounding headache and knelt to the ground, while the other clutched their temples, groaning in pain.
During this process, nobody noticed the faint “click” sounds that echoed throughout the area, as if something had shattered.
A few seconds later, Shen Yuzhe lost consciousness and collapsed to the ground.
